💸 “I just can’t afford to pay back my student loans.”
This familiar cry is once again echoing across the United States.

Starting May 5, 2025, the U.S. Department of Education will resume forced collection of federal student loans that have been in default for over a year.

Roughly 5 million borrowers who have been delinquent will be affected. These collections had been paused during the COVID-19 pandemic but are now set to restart.

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📊 43 Million Americans in Student Debt

As of 2025, approximately 43 million Americans hold federal student loans.

Among them, more than 9.33 million borrowers (over 20%) owe more than $50,000 in student debt, according to the New York Fed’s Household Debt and Credit Report (Q4 2024).

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💥 What’s Happening with Collections?

The Department of Education has announced the following steps:

• Collection notices will be sent in May 2025
  
• Wage garnishments and offsets from tax refunds and federal pensions will begin this summer
  

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🔍 What Happened to Loan Forgiveness?

In 2022, the Biden administration attempted to forgive part of the student debt burden.

However, the Supreme Court ruled the measure unconstitutional in June 2023, leading to its cancellation. As a result, many borrowers are once again facing intense financial pressure.

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🙋‍♀️ Why This Matters

The student loan crisis is a key issue in the upcoming presidential election.

The resumption of collections will directly impact the daily lives of millions of Americans, highlighting the urgent need for sustainable student debt reform.

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